POLAR MARINE ENVIRONMENT: ECOLOGY AND POLLUTION

Overview: This course centers around the study of pollution in polar marine environments, including both chemical and plastic pollution.
Program: Basics on the marine environment: marine biology and ecology with a particular focus on the polar marine environments. Principal characteristics of the Arctic Ocean and the Southern Ocean (polar ecosystems, species adaptation, biodiversity). Basics on marine pollution: main marine pollutants in the Arctic and Antarctic oceans (metals, microplastics, POPs). Sources, transport mechanisms, and impacts of pollutants in the Polar marine environments (habitat degradation, invasive species, climate change). Students will learn about monitoring techniques, risk assessment.